What's truly appalling is that this would also ban any contact between students and teachers. I frequently sub in middle school grades, and the kids are always giving me hugs or high-fives. (I've known some of them since they were in kindergarten.)

Obviously, kids can be hurt by accidental physical contact or by intentional contact meant to harm. But banning all physical contact is absurd: what, no games of tag? How can you tag someone out during a kickball game? How can you guard or block someone while playing basketball?

The principal sounds like she's in over her head and doesn't know what else to do. This kind of desperation move doesn't reflect well on her at all. Parents should challenge the policy and insist that miscreants are punished, not the entire student body.

Joan : The principal sounds like she's in over her head and doesn't know what else to do.

What if someone wrote something inappropriate, would they ban all writing? Grade school is supposed to teach children, among other things, acceptable behavior. This principal is shirking their job, through incompetence or a hatred of students.

Either way, all the children are now being taught inappropriate behavior. If you think the principal is acting strangely, think of what these kids will end up doing in their adult years. Will they be developmentally retarded in some way? Having problems forming emotional attachments and acting out in strange ways? I'm sure many wont be affected, but some are bound to be.

I have the feeling the bullies were exploiting a loophole in the previous policy. After all, a kick in the groin is not exactly a hug. A "no touching" policy eliminates any principal's office lawyering.

Same mind set as making it illegal for anyone to own a gun. Then no one will use one, right? Friggin' idiots.

Laws don't stop incidents and were never meant to. Only morons think words on paper have that magical ability. And this excess is where that idiot thinking always leads... Sala bim, sala bam, no one will ever be hurt again!

This article made me think of two things: First, I got home last week and started watching Judge Judy as I was cooking dinner. One of the cases had to do with kid "sack tapping" another kid. Apparently it was a fun new game that had been spreading throughout the school where one boy "taps" another boy's balls. This fun game resulted in the kid whose family was suing taking a trip to the hospital and major medical expenses. Second, last year there were these groups of crazy people outside of the university I am at, giving people "free hugs". Both of these things make me think that the Principal was absolutely right in outlawing touching. We don't want the kids hurting someone playing stupid games, or, worse, turning into hippies.

This is sabotage by the school Administrators who don't want to have to work or to take any risks. The message to the children is that they are worthless people, and that everything that happens to them is their fault. Welcome to Government run life.